Page 36 of Alice & Meg: Summer Vacation
Alice stepped forward.“I’m Alice.”
“April,” she whispered.“The idiot who got in a car with strangers.”
“Oh, no!”Alice hugged her.“You didn’t know they were jackasses.”
Cyn smiled.“I almost married an asshat, honey.You at least figured it out on the second date.”
“Thank you,” April said.“I’m really sorry to mess up your golf game.”She shuffled back a step.“I guess I need to call my sister.She’ll come and get me.I don’t want to hold you guys up anymore.”
April was not at all holding us up.We just wanted to make sure she was okay.“You can stay with us until she gets here,” I offered.
April blinked.“Why are you being so nice to me?”
I shrugged.“Because we can.You were in trouble, and we helped.You’d do the same.”
“Totally would,” she said.“Didn’t think it would happen to me.”
Cyn smiled softly.“Many moons ago, my ex beat me.Meg was there.We look out for each other.Now you’re one of us.Come back to the motel, let Meg make something crazy, and Alice will finally get to use her blender.”
April blinked.“I don’t know what any of that means, but sure.”
“It means you’re safe now,” I told her.
And for the first time since we saw her, April smiled.
Alice
Friday night rolled in slow and sweet, like a second helping of Meg’s macaroni salad.We’d just finished eating, and I was still marveling over how Meg managed to whip up sub sandwiches, chips, and sides like we were in a fully stocked kitchen instead of a retro pink motel room.
I don’t know how she did it, probably some magical shit, but everything tasted like summer.Tangy coleslaw, creamy potato salad, and those massive subs loaded with meats and cheeses stacked so high even Wrecker had been impressed.The woman was a damn sandwich sorceress.
April had been timid when she first got back to the motel earlier in the afternoon, but now, hours later, she was splashing around in the pool like she’d known us her whole life.Meg had lent her one of her swimsuits, a bright coral one-piece with a ruffled neckline, and she and Adley were floating at the edge of the pool, drinks in hand and giggling like high schoolers.
When she had called her sister to come get her, she had been at work.She still had three hours of her shift, and then she promised that she would be here to get April.
I had relocated the blender from our motel room to the now-closed swim-up bar.With no other guests hanging around, the staff had packed up early, and I took it upon myself to become the bartender for the evening.Wrecker had helped me plug in an extension cord, and I was whipping up margaritas, piña coladas, and a few frozen concoctions I made up on the spot.
“Alice, what’s this one?”Raven asked, eyeing the frosty, neon green drink I slid across the bar.
“No idea,” I grinned.“Let me know if it kills you.”
Greta cackled from her spot perched on the flamingo float next to the pool on dry land.“I want one!”
“Coming right up,” I said, and tossed a handful of ice into the blender.
Adley and April swam over to the bar and perched themselves on the bar stools.
“You guys are the same age, right?”I asked, wiping my hands on a towel.
“Thirty-two,” April nodded.
“Same,” Adley smiled.“Isn’t that wild?”
They chatted for a while, talking about their lives, and I listened as I worked.April was from Dodge, single, used to work in a bookstore, and had left her job six months ago to try something different.Sounded a lot like Adley.They bonded fast, promising to meet up again in a few weeks.
Around 8:30, April’s sister showed up with her windows down, blaring Lizzo.She stepped out of the car like a damn force of nature—tattoos, pink hair, and a grin that said she didn’t take any crap.
I instantly liked her, just like I liked April.
